Female Journalists Targeted by Iranian Security Forces Since Start of Protests, Groups Say

Female journalists in Iran have been targeted by the Islamic Republic’s security forces since the start of antigovernment protests five months ago. At least 17 have been arrested, though some have put the figure at over 50, the BBC reported, citing several activist and press freedom organizations. Nearly 20,000 protesters have been detained and more than 520 protesters killed since the demonstrations against the regime began in September, sparked by the death of 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini while in the custody of Iran’s modesty police for wearing her hijab incorrectly. Elnaz Mohammadi, who works for the reformist newspaper Hammihan, was the most recent female journalist to be arrested; she was released on bail on Sunday. Her twin sister of Elaheh Mohammadi, who works for the same newspaper, was arrested a week after the start of the protests, after being detained for her reporting on Amini’s funeral. Three other female journalists – Melika Hashemi, Saideh Shafiei and Mehrnoosh Zareie – were arrested this month alone. The first journalist to publish a photo of Mahsa Amini, Niloufar Hamedi, was arrested on September 22 and remains in prison. The Washington-based Committee to Protect Journalists estimates that a total of at least 98 journalists and bloggers have been arrested since the start of the protests and that half of them are women. It is likely that more women are reporting on the protests since they are female-led.